Pharmaceutical Market Europe • July / August 2020 • 45
HEALTHCARE COMMS
Sibel Health wins inaugural Spinoff Prize
Start-up medical device company Sibel Health has won the inaugural Spinoff Prize, which was established by Nature Research in partnership with Merck KGaA.
Sibel, which is a spin-off of Northwestern University’s Feinberg School of Medicine in Chicago, Illinois in the US, competed against three other university spin-off companies in the final round of virtual pitching. The other three teams that were in the running were from Caristo Diagnostics, Forkhead BioTherapeutics and PredictImmune.
The Spinoff Prize aims to provide visibility and support for academic entrepreneurs and their companies across the globe. The winning company receives a cash prize of €30,000, while profiles of each of the finalists and 32 promising companies selected as ‘ones to watch’ were included in a special supplement published by Nature. The award was open to all university spin-off companies formed on or after 30 November 2016.
Sibel won the prize based on their innovate sensor system, which was designed for premature babies and avoids the need for adhesive patches that can damage babies’ fragile skin. These sensors are also wireless, which makes it easier for medical staff to perform the necessary procedures and for families to interact with premature infants, in a way that the most sophisticated current medical equipment does not.
The company is also aiming to make this technology accessible and affordable globally, through lower-cost wearable devices and accessories, as well as allowing analysis to take place on readily available mobile devices.
“We congratulate Sibel Health on behalf of everyone at Nature Research. The judges were impressed by the potential global impact that Sibel Health’s technology has, and their clear plans for scaling this up. It is especially exciting that Sibel Health’s technology is intended to be affordable in a wide range of settings, and speaks for a patient group that does not itself have a voice,” said Magdalena Skipper, editor-in-chief of Nature and member of the judging panel.
“The Spinoff Prize finalists demonstrated an amazing collection of breakthrough science with high potential to solve real-world problems, a great fit to the “Curious – Future Insight Conference. At Merck we have a long, successful history of working with technology pioneers from all over the world,” added Ulrich Betz, vice president of Innovation, Merck KGaA.
The Creative Engagement Group acquires Cormis
Strategic communications consultancy joins healthcare comms group
The Creative Engagement Group (TCEG) has acquired Cormis, a strategic communications and training consultancy for the pharmaceutical industry.
TCEG is part of the Huntsworth international healthcare and communication group, and the acquisition of Cormis is the first under the group’s new ownership – Clayton, Dubilier & Rice.
Cormis offers expertise in pharmaceutical sales, as well as medical and marketing staff with the skills, capabilities and mindset needed to compete in the competitive healthcare market. It was founded in 2011, and has a UK office based in Surrey as well as a US office based in Philadelphia.
Following the completion of the acquisition, Cormis’ UK partners Ian Close, Ila Garner-Patel and Dan Masquelier and its US partners Bob Dufour and Sue Loh will continue to lead the company and join TCEG’s leadership team. They will report to Russ Lidstone, group CEO of TCEG.
“The addition of Cormis to our Group is the exciting next step in the strengthening of our strategic offering for healthcare clients. It’s a really compelling prospect to have the strategic and consulting talents of Cormis combine with the rest of The Creative Engagement Group and we’re delighted to have them on the team,” said Lidstone.
“We are excited to combine our expertise with the breadth of engagement offered by The Creative Engagement Group to enhance our service to clients in a changing world where agility and accessibility are of paramount importance,” added Masquelier.
The integration of Cormis follows TCEG’s acquisition of digital training specialists Logicearth in early April. The combination of Cormis with the other consultancies in the TCEG, Axiom and Forty1 groups provides TGEC with increased expertise in marketing, commercial and sales, employee engagement, strategic communications and digital training.